Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke is apparently pumped up to square off against his former teammate Clayton Kershaw when the Dbacks face off with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night.
Dodgers’ ace Kershaw isn’t as excited.
“I don’t really look forward to it,” Kershaw told the media (h/t ESPN). “You almost just try to block it out. It’s not fun to pitch to people that you know. I’m not good at separating that. I think I’m just going to have to really focus and think about it like he’s another guy, and then, the next day I can talk to him.
“Guys that you became pretty good buddies with, it’s not easy for me. I wouldn’t say I’m not looking forward to it, but I’m definitely going to have to block it out a little bit.”
Greinke signed a six-year, $206.5 million deal with the Diamondbacks back in 2016 after spending the previous 3 seasons with the Dodgers and teaming with Kershaw for a formidable rotation. Greinke and Kershaw combined for a 104-34 record with a 2.09 ERA and 1,327 strikeouts in 1,269 2/3 innings as Los Angeles went on to capture three NL West titles during that span.
“I’ve been wanting to face him, just to see how nasty he is,” Greinke said about the upcoming matchup. “… He does do everything as perfect as you would want your pitcher to do. Great mindset, great work ethic. I learned more about that than the actual pitching part of it. He’s pretty special.”